Redeem your Azure Pass

Microsoft Azure services, and planning to use them

For this course, we will use Microsoft Azure web apps and sql databases.

An Azure Pass enables you to create up to ten (10) web apps, and two (2) database servers. A database server can hold one or more sql databases.

Database Server

For this course, you will use one (1) database server. (In that server, you will use three (3) sql databases for sure, for Assignments 7, 8, and 9.)

The database server name can be the same as your Microsoft Account login name. For example:

pmcintyr-wa2016

During the creation of the database server, you must create or define credentials. This is a normal task, and similar to your past experience with database servers. We suggest (and recommend) that you use the same login name and password as your Microsoft Account.

SQL Databases

A database server can hold one or more sql databases, and each sql database name will be customized for the assignment. For Assignment 7, the sql database name will be:

Assign7Store

Web Apps

For this course, you will use three (3) web apps for sure, for Assignments 7, 8, and 9. The recommended web app names will be a composite of part of your Microsoft Account login name, and the assignment name.

For example, if your login name is “pmcintyr-wa2016”, and you want to create a web app for Assignment 7 (“a7”), then use this web app name:

pmcintyr-wa2016a7.azurewebsites.net

In the next section, you will implement these plans.

Login to the Microsoft Azure portal

In a browser, login to the Microsoft Azure management portal, using your Microsoft Account credentials.

For the “Resource group” setting, create a new resource group; we suggest naming it “BTI420” (or “INT422” if you are in the INT422 class).

Yes, choose to Create a new server. A new panel appears.

As noted above, the database server name can be the same as your Microsoft Account login name. For example:

pmcintyr-wa2016

We suggest that you select “South Central US” for the location. In a later step, it appears that the portal creates web apps in that location, and we want to have the same location for our web app and database server.

When you’re ready, click the Create button. The portal will create the database, within a few seconds or minutes.

Create a web app

The following procedure will enable you to create the web app for your Assignment 7 work.

In the Azure portal, choose New > Web + Mobile, and then “Web App”.

The “Web App” configuration panel appears. Enter the app name (which will be the host name), suggested earlier:

pmcintyr-wa2016a7.azurewebsites.net

The other settings are good as they are. Click the Create button when ready.

Publish (deploy) your web app and sql database to Azure

Before you leave the Azure portal, you will need a “connection string”.

Show database connection strings. You will need the ADO.NET string. Use the right-side icon to copy it to the clipboard. Later, you will paste it into the Visual Studio “publish” dialog, and enter your own database server password.

In the Profile settings, choose “Microsoft Azure Web Apps” as the publish target. A dialog appears. You may have to provide credentials, and select a subscription. After doing so, you will see your existing web apps in a resource group.

On the next panel – Connection – click the Validate Connection button, to ensure that the settings are correct.